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kayak1
11-21-2005, 09:01 AM
I am the mother of an 8 week old. We are trying to get him on a good schedule so he will sleep longer through the night. Is it better to put him to bed early so he will get more sleep even though he will probably wake up more often, or put him to sleep later in the evening in the hopes of him sleeping longer while my husband and I are sleeping?
Any hints on a sleeping schedule would be much appreciated!

Also, we have noticed that when he falls asleep for the first time, he will sleep for a few hours and then after he wakes up for his first feeding/changing, he wakes up at shorter time intervals. Why is that?

Calla
11-30-2005, 08:42 AM
At this point, I think the primary goal is to feed as often as you can during the day, and keep things quiet and calm during night feedings. The baby will do the rest of the work on his own. Let him sleep when he seems tired, don't try to keep him up -- at this age keeping a baby awake can lead to less sleep and more grumpiness!

daisy1234
11-30-2005, 09:26 AM
ditto! I really found the info on www.familysleep.com helpful. She has very good info based on age on her site.

Good luck!

Laura

Allison_B
12-01-2005, 10:20 AM
I agree with the previous posts. We find that our daughter does best by going to bed early (she's 6 months old and goes to bed around 6:30, wakes up at 4:30 or 5 to eat and then snoozes some more until 6:30 or 7). When she was younger, my daughter also had the same pattern of waking up at shorter intervals after a longer first stretch. One of the reasons is that their systems are no longer "shut down" because they are now digesting, etc. This will fade away as he gets older.

Once your son is a bit older (closer to three months) you can start "stretching" out when you go into feed him for the first time. For example, if he wakes up at midnight, go in at 12:10 or 12:15, and then just keep adding a few minutes every night.

Like the other gals said, though, right now, just let him guide you on when he wants to sleep and eat. Pay attention to the routine he is getting into and just try to work around that. It'll even out, I promise!

Good luck!

Allison B.